Friday, March 30, 2018

Dreaming of the Masters


We've posted Alice Coltrane here before, but after seeing members of her ashram perform last Sunday at Big Ears, it just feels sort of natural to post her again.


Alice's journey is a remarkable story.  The widow of arguably the most towering of the titans of jazz music, she kept John's legacy alive for several years before developing her own jazz sound featuring harp, piano, and frequent guest collaborator Pharoah Sanders.  But somewhere along the line, before departing this mortal coil in 2007, she formed an ashram in Southern California and adapted spiritual singing and chants into her own music.  Here's a vastly different version of her classic Journey to Satchidinanda.  


Naturally, it was members of her ashram that performed at Big Ears and not the late Ms. Coltrane herself, but still - the ashram of the widow of John Coltrane - it was a rare opportunity to get so close to one of the departed masters.

2 comments:

TerrapinJess said...

Hey... REALLY digging what you are doing here... Just wanted to drop you a line. It is not going unseen... I started doing something similar because I feel music needs to be shared and is very much its own living and breathing entity. Please keep up the good work!
If you like you can check out my site :): https://youhandinyourticket.wordpress.com

Shokai said...

Thanks man, that means a lot to me, especially after I checked out your site! I love PDX - many fond memories of MFNW, the Bunk Bar, Mississippi Studios and, of course, the Doug Fir. One of these years I'll even make it to Pickathon. Anyway, thanks for the kind words.